Breast Implant Settling

Name: Breast Implant Settling
Brand: Lampert Md Plastic Surgery
Rating: 5.0 (774 reviews)

Breast Implant Drop & Breast Implant “Fluff”. It is good to be aware of breast implant expectations prior to deciding on breast augmentation surgery.

Real Patient

Woman in nude undergarments sitting with legs crossed

All surgeries involve postoperative swelling (edema) and a period of healing that can take several months to a year to fully settle down. Scar tissue involving deep soft tissue, muscle, and superficial skin can feel firm and hard initially.

Lampert MD breast augmentation patient 3 weeks post-op

Lampert MD breast augmentation patient 10 weeks post-op

Healing starts with immature collagen (Type III,) which is unorganized and has less tensile strength. As your body heals, injured tissues secrete small hormones called cytokines that signal capillaries to grow into the wound (a process called neovascularization). Blood supply grows into these tissues in order to help heal and bring in fibroblast “fixer” cells. A robust blood supply also brings in much-needed oxygen and nutrients. (This process is more difficult for smokers, poorly controlled diabetics, people with poor nutrition, and other less healthy individuals.) Vascular ingrowth can contribute to swelling, inflammation, and redness after surgery, which is often obvious with many skin scars remaining pink for several months after surgery.

Immediately following surgery: the soft tissue, muscle, and skin surrounding the implant experience significant swelling.

Lampert MD patient before and after breast augmentation

Lampert MD Plastic Surgery patient before and after breast augmentation

Swollen muscle and soft tissue can temporarily push the breast implants upwards. This can often create an engorged breast with a high breast implant position.

side view of Lampert MD patient before and after breast augmentation

Lampert MD breast augmentation patient 10 weeks post-op

In most healthy patients, the wounds heal with a conversion of immature Type III collagen into a more organized, stronger Type I (or mature) collagen. With time, the healing tissues become stronger, with a more mature collagen ratio. This typically allows the healing tissues to acquire a much softer and more natural feel.

Why choose Dr. Lampert?

Breast surgery is a highly popular procedure, and there are many plastic surgeons who see a high volume of patients at a lower cost. Dr. Lampert is an artist and instead focuses on a select number of patients that he provides with meticulously precise and nuanced results. He treats each individual with the same delicacy and care as he would his own family members or loved ones. Instead of rushing clients or pressuring them with sales tactics, Dr. Lampert devotes his consultation to providing information and education, empowering patients to make the best decisions for themselves in terms of their well-being and overall happiness. Unlike at so many of the current plastic surgery “mills,” Dr. Lampert values patient safety above all else. To this end, he created his own state-of-the-art Ambulatory Surgery Center, Miami Surgery, LLC, which houses the most advanced, cutting-edge technology and equipment on the market.

This immaculate facility is Federally Certified by the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), the same agency that licenses all of the best hospitals in the state of Florida. Miami Surgery, LLC is one of only three other AHCA-certified ASCs in Miami-Dade County dedicated to plastic surgery and operated by only Board Certified Plastic Surgeons (American Board of Plastic Surgery) and Board Certified Anesthesiologists. Patients and their families can remain confident that Dr. Lampert’s facility meets and exceeds the same operating standards as the Ambulatory Surgery Centers found in world-class hospitals.

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Every patient is different.

Every patient has different skin elasticity, healing times, and how their tissues respond to the forces of gravity. Some of this is genetic. Other variables or changes can be acquired after environmental influences, such as the history of breastfeeding.

Lampert MD breast augmentation patient 9 days post-op

Lampert MD breast augmentation patient 2 months post-op

This process varies in timing for everyone but is very common among breast implant patients. It can take many months for some patient’s breast tissue to soften as post-inflammation diminishes. When the edema subsides, the muscle, breast tissue, and skin softens, and the breast implants fall in to fill the lower portion of the breast pocket.

Breast implant settling:

This process is often also referred to as “breast implant fluffing” or the time it takes your “breast implants to drop.”

Lampert MD breast augmentation 2 months post-op

As the surgical sites heal, the healed tissue no longer requires such a profuse blood supply. With time, the hormones (cytokines) secreted - initially to recruit the blood supply - are no longer needed. In most healthy patients, at this time, the blood vessels shrink, swelling subsides, and the scars fade from pink to lighter in color. This process can take up to, and even over, a year to fully settle. Usually 70-80% of wound healing, scar maturation, and swelling subsides between 3-8 months. Every patient is different. Typically, the scars fade with time, even after a year.

Lampert MD breast augmentation patient 2 months post-op

Most patients scar well, but some are more problematic scar formers. If scars continue to be red, raised, or problematic after 1-3 months, non-surgical scar revision such as laser or steroid injection may be considered by your surgeon. Surgical scar revision is typically delayed for 8-12 months to allow the maturation process to declare itself.

Managing the Breast Implant Settling or “Fluffing” Process

As each patient is unique, so are each of their breasts! Just as each patient’s surgical plan is custom-tailored, so is their postoperative breast implant and incisional scar treatment plan. Dr. Lampert believes in frequent early follow-up to evaluate and help best control the healing process. Massage protocols, surgical bras, medications, and sometimes bra strap garments are utilized depending on the specific patient’s needs.